Flat mail pieces such as letters are typically sorted by means of pinch belt sorting machines wherein a continuously moving stream of mail pieces is transported along a sorting path by means of pinch belts that hold and transport the mail pieces in the stream. Mail pieces are then selectively diverted into bins or pockets of a sorting case by a series of computer controlled gates. The pockets are then swept, i.e., mail is removed by a human operator and grouped for further processing.
Items such as mail (presorted or not), being shipped internationally are aggregated according to size, weight and destination and sent to a shipping receiver in or near the destination country. The receiver then makes the final delivery to the end address. Usually the receiver is chosen based upon pricing and level of service such as priority vs. economy. A service that is provided by an international mail exchange facility is to aggregate items from multiple sources and prepare them for shipment in the most economical manner according to the shipping receiver, level of service and ultimate destination.
Examples of items that are shipped in this manner include letters, magazines, mail order goods and various media items such as DVDs and software. In the USA, international mail exchange facilities accept mail from many merchants and prepare groupings of items to send to shipping receivers in countries throughout the world. The aggregation and sorting of these items is complex, in that it is a function of weight, format, service level and destination. Shipping receivers specify the manner of containment for an aggregate of items such as a sack or box. A weight range is also specified that will vary by format and receiver. Because the rates charged by receivers can vary frequently, the sorting algorithm must be adjusted to compensate for rate changes to minimize the shipping cost.
The receiver then makes the final delivery to the end address. Usually the receiver is chosen based upon pricing and level of service such as priority vs. economy. A service that is provided by an international mail exchange facility is to aggregate items from multiple sources and prepare them for shipment in the most economical manner according to the shipping receiver, level of service and ultimate destination.
In the current mail exchange facilities items from a source are taken to an appropriate work cell based upon the characteristics of service class and format. These are typically large groupings of like items on a pallet and referred to as a “job”. Within the work cell there are workstations that consist of open face cases often referred to as “pigeon-hole” cases. Each separation within the case is a compartment that is open facing the operator and closed at the back. Each compartment is labeled according to destination and shipping receiver weight range. The operator has a scale and a first piece is weighed and then sorting (done manually) is performed according to the destination and weight range. Occasionally a job such as from a mail order house may consist of items that vary in weight. When this occurs, the operator must weigh each type of item individually and tracking of the weight in a separation is more complex and error prone. A single job may be distributed to multiple workstations within the work cell.
During the sorting operation, the pieces and weight in each separation are tracked by the operator. When an appropriate number of pieces for the weight range specified by the receiver is accumulated in a separation, the operator removes the pieces and places them in a shipping container. The operator writes the number of pieces, destination, receiver, and other relevant data upon the container and closes the container. If the container is a box the operator will cut it down to size to minimize the volume of the container before closing. The container is then sent to a manifesting station where the data for the container is recorded to a database system and a shipping label is printed and applied by a manifesting clerk.
When an operator completes a job there will usually be residue pieces in the case separations that are not sufficient to meet the minimum weight range for a shipping container as specified by the receiver. The operator removes these pieces and takes them to a consolidation area. The operator places the items in consolidation containers and records the relevant data on a form associated with the container such as by a clipboard on a hanger. Operators from other workstations within the work cell bring residue mail to the same consolidation area and, when the items in a consolidation container are sufficient to meet the specified weight range, a shipping container is completed and sent to the manifesting area.
The primary disadvantage of the prior art is inefficiency of labor and resource usage. A worker sorting mail spends over two-thirds of available time doing tasks other than sorting items. These tasks are: getting the job, making up shipping containers, writing down information, taking items to the consolidation area, and so on. While this extraneous activity is being done, the worker is not sorting and the pigeon-hole case is not being used. Because of this, many more workstations and operators are required than in the current invention.